A Courtyard of Roses

Chapter Ten

WYATT HAD PREPARED to leave the Ragan estate ahead of time. As such, when the carriage arrived at the palace gates, it was still hours before the ball would officially begin. Of course, the spare time was not meant for mere sightseeing and fun. Wyatt Ragan had rushed to the palace early for work-related reasons.

"I'll be off. The crown prince is expecting me." With his eyes trained on the hands of his pocket watch, Wyatt relayed a few words of instruction to his younger brother. "Charlie, take care of Alice. Perhaps show her around the palace gardens. As long as you don't wander too far off into the royal family's private quarters, you're free to roam as you wish."

The youth was already bouncing on the balls of his feet, more than eager to hop down the corridor and towards the crown prince's study. However, a part of him wasn't confident in his younger brother's abilities to show Alice around the palace grounds and not get into some form of trouble. In his eyes, Charlie was still a mere young boy that needed guidance to steer clear away from mischief.

"Yes, brother." Charlie made a shooing motion with his hands. "I'm old enough to know my way around. Things like what not to do and where I shouldn't go have all been ingrained by you long ago."

Regardless of Charlie's confident answer, Wyatt still looked as worried as before. His lips were tilted down into a frown, eyebrows furrowed and eyes sharp with a thousand questions. Yet strangely, no words left his lips. He couldn't seem to summon his voice to his aid. The other half of him knew that Charlie was more than grown and Wyatt had been constantly babying him for far too long. Nevertheless, Charlie was still his baby brother. He had all the right to worry.

Before he left, Wyatt reached into his briefcase, pulling out a single pale blue mask that had silver lace trim. The color matched Alice's dress perfectly, obviously a matching set that was made to go together. He held the mask out for Alice to hold, passing it to her before retracting his gloved fingers to reach for his pocket watch again.

"Wear this once the ball begins, Alice," he said. Then, he tilted his chin back to look at the younger boy. "Charlie, I believe you have your mask with you?"

The latter reached into his pockets, pulling out a sleek black mask that was adorned with vibrant magenta flowers, wiggling it a little in the air wordlessly.

"Good. Well then, I'm off. Make sure not to get into any trouble, both of you."

With his final parting words in the air, Wyatt wasted no time in heading towards his next destination, scurrying down the palace halls, expertly weaving past obstacles, turns, and corners until he was eventually out of sight.

Since the Ragans were a well-known noble family which held close ties to the crown prince, neither Charlie nor Wyatt's movements were restricted in the palace grounds. The two brothers had practically grown up with the princes, their familiarity with the layout of the palace on par with the rest of the royal family. However, with Alice around, Charlie was unable to bring her around the royal family's personal wings. There still had to be some form of a distinction between those with royal blood and those without. Regardless, there were still more than plenty of places to showcase to the newcomer.

"Charlie," Alice called out.

In her hands was the periwinkle mask, delicate as freshly fallen snow. When it caught the light of the sun outside, the mask sparkled like a bejeweled accessory though without even a single gem embedded on it. The shimmery lace was enough to give it a frosty look, cold yet elegant, almost to a fault.

Her companion turned around, staring at her questioningly when he heard his name being called out. Tilting his head to one side, he observed Alice's movements. When she didn't make a move to continue her question, he prompted her instead.